Cougars steal thunder in ODA stadium opening

If you don’t count the last few seconds of the game, The Out-of-Door Academy dominated Cardinal Mooney in its home opener Sept. 10.

Unfortunately, the clock didn’t run out fast enough for the Thunder.

Mooney special teams specialist Kevin Phillips blocked a Thunder punt, recovered the ball and ran it 23 yards for the go-ahead score. With just 7.5 seconds remaining, ODA and its stadium full of white-clad fans, watched in disbelief as the Cougars sneaked out with a 27-25 win.

The crushing ending overshadows an impressive showing by the Thunder. ODA came out of the gate quick, scoring its first touchdown less than two minutes into the game on a 15-yard scamper by quarterback Brian Ragone. The Thunder increased its lead to 13-0 by the end of the first quarter before Mooney’s offense responded.

The Thunder will return to action Sept. 16 at home against First Baptist Academy. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.